It is a common practice among those working in the arts and crafts fields, such when creating miniature displays utilizing miniature figures and snow scenes as well as in constructing terrariums, to use a variety of commercially available fluffy-like fiber materials, such as those known as “fiber fill” consisting of a random fluffy mass of polyester fibers, or similar fluffy material made from natural fibers such as cotton in the form of cotton balls and the like. Examples of such products are “POLY-FIL”® brand polyester fiber fill made by Fairfield Processing Corporation of Danbury, Conn., “AIR-LITE” brand fiber fill material made by Air-Lite Synthesis of Pontiac, Mich. (Simplicity Pattern Company), “COSMETIC PUFFS” brand of cotton balls made by Acme/Chaston of Dayville, Conn., “Johnson & Johnson” Cotton balls made by J. & J. Consumers Products Company in Skillman, N.J., resin treated “POLY-FIBER” material made by Stearns Technical Textiles Co. of Cincinnati Ohio, “PRETTY HAIR” brand fiber fluff made by Aldastar Corporation, Brooklyn, New York, “WAVY HAIR” brand decorative fluff made by One and Only Creations of Napa, Calif. and “FLUF-STUF®” brand fiber fluff material made by Village Sampler Industries Inc., distributed by Dayton Hudson Corp., Minneapolis, Minn. 55402 and “FEELO-FLEECE” brand fiber fluff material made by Plaid Enterprises, 6553 Warren Dr., P.O. Drawer “E”, Norcross, Ga. 30091.
Such fluffy fiber materials are often also used in the making of baby quilts and accessories and quilted clothing and pillow stuffings as well as in home decorating and craft projects. Typically such ready-made materials are provided as a uniform mass of white fibers and less often as a uniform blend of two or more different colors and shades of fiber. However, if a multi-colored decorative effect is desired, a variety of different colors of ready-made fiber fill products must be assembled from an inventory of differentially colored uniformly blended stock of such materials. Alternatively, decorator spray paint of various colors can be applied in attempt to create a variegated color effect after the material is assembled on the scene. However, these existing materials and techniques are undesirable or unsuitable for many decorative craft or professional applications, both from the standpoint of undue cost and time consuming labor and less than desirable aesthetic effects being achievable.
The foregoing deficiencies of commercially available fiber fill materials led to the development of the products, methods and apparatus provided by the present invention. Some of the history of the development of the present imitation as well as the disclosure of making and using an early embodiment of the present invention is set forth in the aforementioned Disclosure Document Number 394526, attached hereto at Appendix A and incorporated herein by reference.